There are many places where detection of panel breakage is important. It should be appreciated that the panels can be made from, for example, glass, plastic, crystal, and so forth. Furthermore, the panels need not be transparent, and can also have a frosted surface. Some examples of such places include, window display areas for retail stores, windscreens/windows for vehicles, display cases at exhibitions, and so forth. The detection of panel breakage is critical to ensure that potential breaches of security can be promptly acted upon by the requisite parties.
Currently, known tamper detection devices in relation to detecting breakage in panels generally include at least one of: a first sensor to detect an acoustic and/or shock signature of the panel shattering, a second sensor to determine electrical continuity of a patterned conductive layer added on the surface of the glass, and a laminate applied to the panel surface to withstand breakage or punctures. Furthermore, there are also methods which rely on at least one of the aforementioned devices to carry out tamper detection for the panels. Unfortunately, the aforementioned devices/methods have issues which adversely affect their effectiveness in relation to tamper detection.
For example, acoustic and/or shock sensors are susceptible to false positives given the difficulty in adjusting their sensitivity. In addition, the patterned conductive layer usually does not cover an entire surface of the panel in question, and this leaves vulnerable areas on the panel where tampering can be carried out without detection. Furthermore, a laminate merely reinforces the panel it is applied to, and is incapable of detecting whether the panel has been tampered with.
It is evident that there are issues in relation to tamper detection of panels.